We went to the Moon as technicians; we returned as humanitarians.
Edgar MitchellRead
It was a beautiful, harmonious, peaceful-looking planet, blue with white clouds, and one that gave you a deep sense of home, of being, of identity. It is what I prefer to call instant global consciousness.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the profound connection humanity has with Earth, evoking a sense of identity and belonging.
Edgar Mitchell reflects on the awe-inspiring view of Earth from space, highlighting how it fosters a feeling of global unity and consciousness among all inhabitants. He suggests that seeing our planet from afar instills a deep appreciation for its beauty and interconnectedness, prompting a sense of identity that transcends borders.
In practice
In a speech about environmental awareness, one might use this quote to express the beauty of our planet.
We went to the Moon as technicians; we returned as humanitarians.
We should be ready to reach out beyond our planet and beyond our solar system to find out what is really going on out there.
We need to make the world safe for creativity and intuition, for it's creativity and intuition that will make the world safe for us.
We're at a point in history were we have to become a part of the neighborhood of inhabited planets, like a neighborhood of a community, which we have not even acknowledged that that community exists up until this point.
You develop an instant global consciousness, a people orientation, an intense dissatisfaction with the state of the world, and a compulsion to do something about it. From out there on the moon, international politics looks so petty.
My view of our planet was a glimpse of divinity.
An event may be small and insignificant in its origin , and yet, when drawn close to one’s eye, it may open in its center an infinite and radiant perspective because a higher order of being is trying to express itself in it and irradiates it violently.
Physically, man is but an atom in space, and a pulsation in time. Spiritually, the entire outward universe receives significance from him, and the scope of his existence stretches beyond the stars.
We are built to live in the kingdom of God. It is our natural habitat.
We cannot get from anyone else the things we need to fill the endless terrible need, not to be dissolved, not to sink back into sand, heat, broom, air, thinnest air. And so we revolve around each other and our dreams collide. Look out the window in any weather. We are part of all that glamour, drama, change, and should not be ashamed.
There are no journalistic ethics that transcend the value of human life. There are none. In a situation where you can save a human life, you must. There isn't any conflict in my mind.
A man's conscience and his judgment is the same thing; and as the judgment, so also the conscience, may be erroneous.
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